Farmer's pie!

   Do you remember my "meat and potatoes kind of girl" post from long time ago featuring delicious Shepherd's pie (if not you can find it here)? Well, I might not be so "meaty" anymore, but I still love me some potatoes and that's why I created this dish. I can't call it a "Shepherd's pie" anymore because it doesn't have any meat, but since it's a vegetarian version I decided to call it a "Farmer's pie". It's really good and flavorful. I used some chia seeds, because they are not only a great "binder", but also add tons of omega-3s and proteins to the dish. If you can't find them or don't want to spend money, you can definitely skip them in this dish and it still will be delicious. Here is the recipe, serves 6-8:

Ingredients:

Veggies:
*  1 large onion, chopped
*  3 garlic cloves, chopped
*  2 zucchini, chopped
*  4 celery sticks, chopped
*  1 cup frozen corn
*  2 cups frozen carrot/pea mix, thawed
*  1/3 cup chia seeds
*  1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
*  1 tsp dried thyme
*  2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
*  2 tbsp ketchup (trust me!)
*  1 tbsp olive oil
*  salt and pepper

Potatoes:
*  2 large potatoes
*  2 yams
*  1/2 cup skim milk
*  1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
*  2 eggs

Directions:

1. Boil potatoes and yams in salted water.
2. In the meantime, in a large skillet heat the olive oil and saute chopped onions for 3-4 minutes. Add garlic, zucchini, celery, corn, and carrot/pea mix. Add a pinch of salt (will help to sweat the veggies) and cook for 6-7 minutes until veggies are tender but not overcooked.
3. Add thyme, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, pepper and salt (to taste) and cook everything for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add chia seeds and parsley, mix to combine and set aside.
5. Drain cooked potatoes, add milk, Parmesan cheese, and eggs - mash everything together until smooth.
6. On the bottom of the baking dish layer all the vegetables, top with potato layer, and bake at 360F for 30 minutes.

   The top of the potatoes is super crispy, while the middle is creamy and smooth. The deeper you dig the more flavor and texture you can find... chunks of delicious veggies mixed with creamy potatoes is just a perfect combination.

Enjoy,
Magda.